This election, BJP will break certain myths that will surprise everyone… PM Modi has immense blessings of people from east to west, north to south: J P Nadda

Amid the hectic campaign for the seven-phased Lok Sabha elections, J P Nadda, President, Bharatiya Janata Party, spoke to The Indian Express at his official residence in New Delhi on a range of issues.

Excerpts:

The Congress won only 44 and then 52 seats in the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha elections respectively, why is Congress party’s leader Rahul Gandhi the primary target of the BJP’s attack?

It is not us, it is because of the media. The media covers everything he says and we are forced to respond. We cannot keep quiet. One who has not read the Constitution is walking around with a copy of the Constitution in his hand. You have never questioned him. Their performance is continuously slipping. Why should we otherwise talk about them; they will take care of their own affairs.

You mentioned the Constitution. But that issue was triggered when certain BJP leaders said that the BJP wants 400 plus so that it can change the Constitution.

We have different kinds of people in the party. I called up Lallu Singh (Faizabad MP) immediately and told him it’s not the agenda of the party. I spoke to (BJP candidate in Nagaur) Jyoti Mirdha also. (Lok Sabha MP) Ananth Kumar Hegde was denied a ticket because he had made such comments many times. The BJP does not subscribe to their views. It’s also because you go to leaders like Sakshi Maharaj or Giriraj Singh for reactions. I must say they do not govern the thought process of the BJP. What the party says from its platform is the authentic BJP position. There is no move to change the Constitution.

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BJP national president J P Nadda addressing a public meeting in Himachal Pradesh’s Kangra. (Photo: J P Nadda/ X) BJP national president J P Nadda addressing a public meeting in Himachal Pradesh’s Kangra. (Photo: J P Nadda/ X)

The problem is that Rahul Gandhi does not read…I do not know what his formal educational qualification is. He does not know his great grandfather (Pandit Nehru) had amended the Constitution to restrict the freedom of speech. His grandmother changed the Constitution to veto a court verdict. His respected father amended the Constitution to appease the Muslims in the Shah Bano case. Rahul Gandhi himself tore the ordinance issued by a Constitutional authority. Who changed the Constitution? We have been in power for 10 years — have we imposed Presidential rule in any state except in Jammu and Kashmir? Have we usurped power anywhere? We have always respected the Constitution. We will not fiddle with the Constitution – we are here to protect it.

Why do you think a section of Dalit community is feeling insecure about the Constitution?

I do not know from where you get such information. The Opposition is trying to spread this canard of fear and insecurity among minorities and Dalits. But why do you buy such fake narratives? What have we done in 10 years that warrants such apprehension? As the Prime Minister himself has said, no one will be allowed to change the Constitution framed by Babasaheb Ambedkar and we will do whatever it takes to defend the Constitution.

This is a time when the BJP is in its strongest position. You have expanded, inducted leaders from other parties as well. What’s the next leap in your expansion?

Spreading the party is a continuing process – it’s on 24X7, 365 days for the BJP. We have been working consistently. We were initially strong in central India, then in north, then in west. For the past few years, we had concentrated in the Northeast and eastern India. We will get good results in the Northeast, and eastern India. We will form the government in Odisha. We will expand in Telangana, we will have seats in Andhra Pradesh, and we will open our account in (the Lok Sabha polls) Tamil Nadu and Kerala while retaining Karnataka. Vote share in these states will go up. We are also consolidating our position in states where we have already expanded. The process is on. Hit and trial keeps happening. We have lost Telangana, but we made considerable gains.

In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, I am confident that the BJP will break certain myths that will surprise everyone. With the kind of support we are getting from people in all these southern states to strengthen the hands of PM Modi and to make India a developed nation, I can safely say that the BJP will be the single largest party in South India.

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In this process, you have taken many leaders some of whom face corruption charges. Do you screen leaders before inducting them into the BJP?

We do take care of many things. First of all, what’s the advantage for the BJP in its expansion process with an induction? Because we have to strengthen the party. There are some issues against a few leaders. But we have not stopped the investigation process at all. Law will take its own course. When some people want to join the BJP, we also feel that it is advantageous to the BJP. But that does not mean that we make compromises with it.

So does this mean that the case, investigations against Suvendu Adhikari, Ajit Pawar, Ashok Chavan, etc. will continue?

Yes, all (proceedings) are going on. None will be taken back. Everything is going on. There is no pressure to drop the probes at all.

But it is interesting that not a single BJP MLA or MP is facing any inquiry or investigation?

We are very conscious about it. The governance process is very tough in the BJP; the poochtach (internal inquiry) is very stringent in our party. No one dares to do anything under Modiji. Our own process is very tough, we stop any such wrongdoing; there is strong vigilance and the people in the party are cautioned regularly. It is my duty to tell them.

Foreign Minister S Jaishankar has talked about Western interference to disturb India’s democratic process. Do you really see this?

You know very well that much of the narrative that you get comes from the Western media. They have influence and it is the Western influence. They do not understand the intrinsic strength nor can they digest it. They do not appreciate it.

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The BJP’s stand on Manipur has been criticised widely. You, being the president of the ruling party, have not visited Manipur.

First of all, one needs to understand the historical background – there has been a long history of conflict between Meitei and Kuki. It’s a tribal issue and has been there for long. (The conflict) has come down now. During Congress rule, the conflict went on for two-three years. Forget the Prime Minister, not even junior ministers visited the state then. Now the tribal issue has been converted into a religious or communal issue with Christians on one side. This time, it has been brought under control in two-three weeks. We are very clear that we are for both the Kuki and Meitei and we have to bring peace. We go to Kerala and talk to Christians to make them understand. But I must say that it is the work of divisive forces to change the narrative. They bring such narratives that could weaken not just the BJP, but the country.

The BJP has high stakes there – you have organisations like NEDA and the party has made good strides in the region. The people felt agitated because neither the PM nor you visited the state.

There need not be any such apprehension. Our intention is clear. The issue is law and order. Jinko jana tha, vo gaye. In the past, no other Home Minister had visited the state during conflicts. The BJP will win both the Lok Sabha seats there. We have performed well, that’s why we, the NDA, win.

What will be the BJP’s imperative to reach out to the Muslim community post elections?

We believe in the philosophy of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas. We will continue with it. PM Modi has taken a lot of initiatives to change the lives of poor and the minority and we do not discriminate against anyone in it. But we never used it as a vote bank nor tried to politicise it. We believe unification of the polity is possible only when the less talked about is addressed. But the Muslim minority has been falling in the trap to the vicious design of the Congress since independence. This vicious design is ‘divide and rule’. The Muslim minority has got nothing under the Congress, their quality of lives has changed only because of Modi’s programmes. He has tried to unify everyone — irrespective of caste, creed and religion.

As a responsible party, BJP will keep talking to them, try to convince them to call spade a spade. They have realised but because of their own compulsions and the ecosystem, they are still there. Things are changing and now there are reports in the media that 4-5% Muslims have voted for the BJP. One out of four Muslim women voted for the BJP, reports said. But (we need to) handle with care, it’s a delicate issue because it’s a nation-building business. We have to talk in those terms. Misunderstanding will disappear slowly. Like the backward classes – the BJP has earned their confidence despite being called a Brahmin party once. It is changing because our intention is clear. In the south, we have a problem with the language. But we cannot blame them.

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Is your party different in the South? Leaders less polarising?

It is because of the atmosphere and the interpretation of the utterances. In the case of states like Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, the Congress had given special treatment to Muslims. So there is a reaction to this appeasement — they became champions of one community and ignored the other. It’s not so in the South. It’s a matter of permutation-combination. All our leaders will be nationalists. Every leader will believe in the universal principle of unity in diversity. We do respect the diverse tradition, culture and customs, but we have to keep the nation united. See, Christians are very comfortable with us in Goa, northeast and now in Kerala. They started understanding the issues — like what we saw in The Kerala Story. It happened in their houses. They felt the heat.

But what we saw in The Kerala Story sounds more like a narrative… It is not the real picture; there are just a few cases.

No, there are hundreds of cases. You take the list of missing girls.

The BJP has been in power for 10 years, the RSS is your ideological parent. You are strong now, have a robust network across the country. What is the BJP-RSS state of play? We do not see much presence of the RSS in the government nor is it reflected in the policies like we had seen in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government?

You see, we have also grown. Everyone has got their own work. RSS is a cultural organisation and we are a political organisation. Shuru mein hum aksham honge, thora kum honge, RSS ki zaroorat padti thi… Aaj hum badh gaye hain, saksham hai… toh BJP apne aap ko chalati hai. (In the beginning we would have been less capable, smaller and needed the RSS. Today, we have grown and we are capable. The BJP runs itself.) That’s the difference.

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So you don’t think you need the RSS in your political activities…

Need ka sawal nahi hai. (It’s not a question of need). It’s (RSS is) an ideological front. Vo ideologically apna kaam karte hein, hum apna. The RSS and the BJP have their own areas of working very clearly established. The RSS has a century-long experience of working on socio-cultural issues. They have worked extensively in all parts of India. The BJP is a political party working to take India to new heights of progress. Powered by our karyakartas, we have emerged as the preferred choice for 140 crore Indians. Both the RSS and the BJP are performing their duties to the best of their abilities. There is great respect among both organisations for each other. Some in the media like speculating on RSS-BJP relations, they spread conspiracy theories, myths. The reality is that both have a rich history of working in tandem, guided by the spirit of Nation First.

The PM’s suggestion that “sacks of black money” and “tempos full of notes” from Adani and Ambani are going to the Congress which, in turn, demands a probe into Ambani and Adani…

What’s there to investigate? Everyone knows that money keeps going. They do give money, to everyone. The issue is that you have been abusing them for five years but now you have taken money from them. It’s their double standard and we are exposing them. PM Modi has clarified that we respect the industrialists and entrepreneurs. We respect those who work hard and we respect those who invest in people who work hard. Those who contribute to this country’s growth have to be respected.

Electoral bond details do not show Adani and Ambani have donated to the Congress.

Electoral bonds are not the only way to give money. The Congress party knows that there are many ways to give money.

Two Chief Ministers Yogi Adityanath and Himanta Biswa Sarma have spoken about temples in the Krishna Janmabhoomi site in Mathura and in place of the Gyanvapi Mosque in Varanasi. What’s the BJP’s official stance?

There is no ambiguity in this for the BJP. The BJP had incorporated the demand for Ram temple in our Palampur resolution and it became a reality after a long struggle. Some people get emotional or excited and make such statements. Ours is a big party and leaders can talk about the issues they feel ideologically strong about. The BJP does not have any such idea, plan, or desire. There are no discussions either. Our system works in a way in which the party’s thought process is set by the discussions in Parliamentary board, then it goes to the national council which endorses it.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi has decided that the party’s focus will be the poor, exploited, Dalits, women, youth, farmers and marginal sections of the society. These sections should be mainstreamed and empowered. We have to strengthen them. Our focus is on supporting the poor.

What are the political challenges for the BJP now, which the party did not have to face in 2019?

This question holds immense importance because it’s not merely a challenge faced by the BJP, rather it profoundly impacts our democracy. In this election, we are not just up against political parties, alliances, leaders or genuine issues and public grievances. What we are grappling with is a formidable challenge: an organised endeavour utilizing technology to propagate misinformation, engaging in criminal conspiracy to fabricate lies, all of which pose a grave threat to Indian democracy. The orchestrated dissemination of false narratives aimed at instigating apprehension, distrust and social division such as circulating fake videos of Home Minister Amit Shah regarding reservations for OBC, SC & ST stands as a significant issue demanding our attention.

Similarly, the concocted narrative suggesting that if PM Modi secures a third term and the NDA achieves 400+ seats, the Constitution will be altered, is equally concerning. Beyond this, there is a concerted effort to undermine the election process, the electoral system and the Election Commission. This blatant thuggery operated by political parties, leaders, academicians, lawyers, activists, and even certain media entities and foreign influences aimed at manipulating the electoral outcome is profoundly alarming.

BJP is the single largest recipient of the electoral bonds. Now that it doesn’t exist what are the challenges in election financing?

Why single out BJP? All major opposition parties, national as well as regional, received electoral bonds and together they have got almost the same amount as the BJP received. The purpose of electoral bonds was to eliminate black money from the electoral system. We respect the decision of the Supreme Court but regret to see the door for black money has been opened once again and this is a challenge that we have to tackle collectively.

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Arvind Kejriwal’s statement that “You are not voting for Modi, but it would be a vote for Amit Shah” has made the BJP to say that PM Modi will complete the term irrespective of his age. Does it apply to other leaders also?

You seem to assume that there was some truth in what Arvind Kejriwal said and that’s why we had to clarify. To tell you the truth, it is a complete lie, a figment of their imagination to mislead the people. Kejriwal and other opposition leaders are using the excuse of Modi ji’s age as there is no provision in BJP’s Constitution stating that a leader has to retire at the age of 75. All the leaders of the INDI Alliance know that we are going to cross 400 seats and Modi ji will become the prime minister of this country for the third time that is why they are spreading this type of misconception. They cannot win election by spreading such lies. Modiji has the immense blessings of the people from east to west north to South.

The high turnout in Srinagar has been a very positive development. What explains it and what is the message?

It is the victory of Indian democracy, the biggest celebration of democracy in Kashmir. The abrogation of Article 370 has enabled the potential and aspiration of the people to find full expression. The basic spirit of democracy is not who gets defeated and who gets elected; the basic spirit of democracy is that the people trust the system and the Election Commission to safeguard the right to choose or reject. The larger picture is that the people of Kashmir have reaffirmed their faith in Indian democracy.